West Michigan students pick urban settings for senior photos

Emily Zoladz photos | The Grand Rapids PressKate Lichtenstein, 17, of East Grand Rapids, poses in an alley behind San Chez Bistro during her senior portrait session Wednesday with photographer Terri Vruggink. Urban settings have become increasingly popular for child and teen portraits.

GRAND RAPIDS -- As Grandville High School senior Mary Hall sat atop a flood wall overlooking the Grand River, photographer Greg Schrader encouraged her to work the lens.

This wasn't just some modeling shoot for a catalog. This was to be her senior picture.
Forget dramatically lit mugs with dull-colored or fake backdrops.

More and more high school seniors are embracing back alleys, old bridges, low-rent industrial buildings and graffiti found in and around Grand Rapids as the setting for their final school pictures.

Schrader helped Hall hop off the flood wall, then directed her to a discarded black vinyl couch. It was a perfect contrast for her flowing green dress, piercing eyes and blonde hair.

"I just feel like everyone goes to the beach or the parks in Grandville, and I just wanted something different," said Hall, whose shots looked like something out of a hip clothing catalog. "I like the feel of downtown, how it looks. I think it's cool."

East Grand Rapids photographer Terri Vruggink said almost all of the seniors she photographed over the past year requested urban settings.

"They are looking at what looks better to their peers as opposed to years past, when it was really for friends and parents' friends," said Vruggink, who photographed East Grand Rapids senior Kate Lichtenstein on a brick-paved alley behind San Chez Bistro on Wednesday. "They're using (the photos) on social networking sites and those sort of things so they look a lot cooler to their peers."

Such out-of-the box shoots can make for big business. Schrader said his senior packages average around $400, while Vruggink's customers typically drop at least $500.

Some photographers charge that much or more just to show up, with complete packages costing more than $1,000.

Vruggink said she has almost no requests for the button-up pictures common a decade ago. She encourages the students she shoots to dress to their personality.

"Almost everything is more informal," she said. "It seems more unrealistic to put someone in a suit and tie against a black background. I'm trying to capture how they actually are, incorporate what a person that age is really like."

There are no regulations for what can be shot -- or where. Vruggink and Schrader said they have favorite spots and have learned to improvise.

"Our philosophy is to ask for forgiveness instead of permission," Schrader said.

"I'm not going to be stupid about it. I will go and shoot someplace until I'm told not to."

For the most part, there have been few problems. Many businesses happily cooperate.

About a month ago, Schrader said a homeless man threatened to stab him along Division Avenue, but Schrader said he and his subject simply took that as their cue to move along.

"The biggest advantage would just be the variety and the impact of the images," Schrader said.

"For me, it's all about keeping it real. The studio is great but, for me, I lose my creative flow when I'm in the studio.